Survey Says

November 1, 2013

Over-involvement may be an issue on campus for many Monmouth College students. The Courier recently surveyed 150 students from a random sampling on their involvement on campus, their perceived amount of free-time and their drinking habits. The study found that an overwhelming majority of students are involved on campus, but that a smaller number of students are doing a vast majority of the work.

The survey found that 91.03 percent of students are involved in at least one activity outside of academics, which could include a club, sports and an on or off-campus job. The survey represents a high number of involved students on campus, as less than nine percent had no involvement other than academic obligations. Only including the 133 involved students who were surveyed, the survey showed the average involved student is an active participant in 3.77 organizations in which an average of 15 hours per week is solely dedicated to extracurricular activities.

Students involved in four or more organizations on campus can then be labeled as “over-involved” students since they fall above the 3.77 average. One such student is senior Lindsay Banks, an International Business major. Banks is a member of Alpha Xi Delta where she holds the position of New Member Orientation Chair; she serves as Lead House Manager for Alpha Xi Delta under the Office of Student Involvement; she is the immediate past president of Rotaract, a club Banks was a charter member of; she is a lead orientation leader; and Banks also serves as the President of Order of Omega, an honor society for Greek life members.

Banks, a participant of the survey, feels even though she falls under the category of an “over-involved” student, she does not think her over-involvement interferes with her academic schedule.

“I think that’s typical for Monmouth students though,” Banks said. “You are either over-involved or you’re not involved at all. And if you are involved, you know how to plan your schedule around your academics. I stay involved in the organizations I choose to be a part of, but I only participate in what I know I can handle and I think that holds true for most other students here.”

From the survey, The Courier discovered that of the 150 surveyed students, 105 students hold at least one position in a campus organization. The average student holds approximately two leadership positions on campus.

Additionally, 68 students hold a position on at least one executive board.

Banks holds three executive board positions on campus, statistically making her one of the most over-involved students who participated in the survey. Banks has noticed that her over-involvement has actually helped her academically.

“I made the Dean’s List the last year. I’ve noticed that as I’ve gotten more involved, my grades have been better.”

Banks does line up with many of the statistics the survey found. For example, Banks considers herself a “lower than average social drinker.”

The survey found that students who are involved in four or more organizations consume, on average, 3.57 alcoholic beverages per week. Students who are involved in less than four organizations consume significantly higher amounts of alcohol, averaging 5.69 drinks per week, which may correlate with the survey data that shows involved students spend approximately 15 hours per week on extracurricular activities and in turn only have a total of 13.8 hours of perceived free-time per week.

Banks was most taken back by the data that shows involved students miss an average of 3.23 classes per semester.
“I just can’t see how someone who is a face of an organization can miss class. It gives a bad reputation to your organization.”

For Banks, who claims to miss usually only one class per semester, three is too high, as she uses her in-class time to build relationships with her professors who help her not only with academics but with her extracurricular activities as well.